Sink drain hole structure

ABSTRACT

A sink drain hole structure, which can be more securely connected with a drain by a connector without loosening. The sink drain hole structure includes a sink main body formed of a rigid wall and a drain hole integrally formed with the sink main body. The drain hole is defined with a horizontal reference axis and a vertical reference axis. The drain hole has an edge section in the direction of the horizontal reference axis for supporting and connecting with a drain (or a drain pipe), a connection section extending from the edge section in the direction of the vertical reference axis and a terminal section (or folding edge) extending from the connection section in the direction of the horizontal reference axis. The terminal section overlaps at least a part of the edge section to form a double-layered structure defining an elastic space.

BACKGROUND OF THE INVENTION

1. Field of the Invention

The present invention relates generally to a sink drain hole structure,and more particularly to a sink drain hole structure having an edgesection, a connection section vertically extending from the edge sectionand a terminal section horizontally extending from the connectionsection to together define an elastic space for enhancing the securityof connection between the drain hole and the drain (or the drain pipe).

2. Description of the Related Art

A conventional kitchen cabinet or the like platform is equipped with asink structure for washing or containing water. For example, U.S. Pat.No. 4,333,188 discloses a convertible sink and U.S. Pat. No. D352771discloses a sink. Basically, the sink has a drain hole and a drain ordrain pipe connected with the drain hole by means of a connector fordraining the sink.

In consideration of manufacturing and processing cost, the sink anddrain hole are made of metal thin sheet (such as stainless steel) bymeans of pressing. When the water is filled into the sink from a tap,the water beam will directly impact the bottom of the sink to vibratethe sink by a considerable amplitude. After a long period of use, theconnector for connecting the drain (or the drain pipe) with the drainhole often loosens to cause leakage. In some special decoration designs,the sink is embedded in a concrete structure or implanted in a narrowspace. Therefore, it is very hard for a worker to relock the loosenedconnector and drain (or the drain pipe).

As well known by those who are skilled in this field, the material ofthe drain pipe connector assembly structure is subject to aging. Also,the sink is long-term repeatedly used to contain hot water and coldwater. Due to thermal expansion/contraction, the drain and the connectorwill also gradually loosen.

There is another problem of the conventional sink drain hole instructure and use. That is, the sink and drain hole are made of metalthin sheet by pressing so that the drain hole has a sharp edge. As aresult, it often takes place that a user is cut by the sharp edge. Thisis not what we expect.

It is therefore tried by the applicant to provide a sink drain holestructure, which can overcome the problems existing in the conventionalsink drain hole that the water beam will impact and vibrate the sink tocause loosening and leakage of the connector for connecting the drain(or the drain pipe) with the drain hole and the drain (or the drainpipe) and the connector will gradually loosen due to thermalexpansion/contraction and the material of the drain pipe connectorassembly structure is subject to aging. In this case, it is unnecessaryfor a worker to relock the loosened connector and drain pipe.

The drain hole and the drain pipe of the sink drain hole structure ofthe present invention can be more securely assembled without increasingthe thickness of the sink and the drain hole. Also, the drain hole ofthe sink drain hole structure of the present invention has arched edgeso that a user is protected from being cut.

SUMMARY OF THE INVENTION

It is therefore a primary object of the present invention to provide asink drain hole structure, which can be more securely connected with adrain by a connector without loosening. The sink drain hole structureincludes a sink main body formed of a rigid wall and a drain holeintegrally formed with the sink main body. The drain hole is definedwith a horizontal reference axis and a vertical reference axis. Thedrain hole has an edge section in the direction of the horizontalreference axis for supporting and connecting with a drain (or a drainpipe), a connection section extending from the edge section in thedirection of the vertical reference axis and a terminal section (orfolding edge) extending from the connection section in the direction ofthe horizontal reference axis. The terminal section overlaps at least apart of the edge section to form a substantially double-layeredstructure. The sink drain hole structure of the present inventionovercomes the problems of the conventional sink drain hole that thestructural strength is lower and the edge is likely to cut a user.

In the above sink drain hole structure, the connection section of thedrain hole is an arched turning structure, whereby the edge section andthe terminal section as well as the connection section together form adouble-layered structure with a substantially U-shaped cross section.Accordingly, the edge section, the connection section and the terminalsection together define an elastic space (in the double-layeredstructure). The elastic space provides an elastic tightening tolerancewhen the drain pipe (or the drain) is locked with the drain hole bymeans of a connector. In other words, the elastic space can provide alooseness-proof effect for the locking relationship between theconnector and the drain pipe. Accordingly, the drainpipe can be moresecurely locked with the drain hole by means of the connector.

The present invention can be best understood through the followingdescription and accompanying drawings, wherein:

BRIEF DESCRIPTION OF THE DRAWINGS

FIG. 1 is a perspective sectional view of the sink main body of thepresent invention, showing the drain hole of the sink main body;

FIG. 2 is a plane sectional view of the drain hole of the presentinvention, showing that the edge section, the connection section and theterminal section together define an elastic space and the tail end ofthe terminal section leans against the edge section;

FIG. 3 is a sectional view showing the assembly of the presentinvention, the drain pipe and the connector;

FIG. 4 is a plane sectional view of the drain hole of the presentinvention, showing that the terminal section is pressed against the edgesection;

FIG. 5 is a plane sectional view of another embodiment of the drain holeof the present invention, showing that the edge section is fitted in anenclosure body; and

FIG. 6 is a plane sectional view of still another embodiment of thedrain hole of the present invention, showing that the connection sectionis upward bent and the terminal section extends from the connectionsection in the direction of the horizontal reference axis to leanagainst an upper side of the edge section.

DETAILED DESCRIPTION OF THE PREFERRED EMBODIMENTS

Please refer to FIGS. 1 and 2. The sink drain hole structure of thepresent invention includes a sink main body 10 formed of a rigid wall 11and a drain hole 20 integrally formed with the sink main body 10. Thesink main body 10 has a basin 12 in communication with the drain hole 20for containing water or other liquid. In this embodiment, the sink mainbody 10 (or the rigid wall 11) is made of a metal sheet (such asstainless steel) by means of pressing. The metal sheet is integrallydrawn and pressed to form the drain hole 20.

Referring to FIG. 2, the sink main body 10 (or the drain hole 20) isdefined with a horizontal reference axis x, a vertical reference axis yand a central area C. The drain hole 20 has an edge section 21 in thedirection of the horizontal reference axis x for supporting andconnecting with a drain (or a drain pipe). A connection section 22extends from the edge section 21 toward the central area C in thedirection of the vertical reference axis y. A terminal section 23 (orfolding edge) extends from the connection section 22 in the direction ofthe horizontal reference axis x. The terminal section 23 overlaps atleast a part of the edge section 21 to form a substantiallydouble-layered structure.

As shown in the drawings, the terminal section 23 has a tail end 25leant against the edge section 21.

In this embodiment, the connection section 22 of the drain hole 20 is anarched turning structure, whereby the edge section 21 and the terminalsection 23 as well as the connection section 22 together form adouble-layered structure with a substantially U-shaped cross section.Accordingly, the edge section 21, the connection section 22 and theterminal section 23 together define an elastic space 24 (in thedouble-layered structure).

Please now refer to FIG. 3. The elastic space 24 provides an elastictightening tolerance when the drain pipe 40 (or the drain) is lockedwith the drain hole 20 by means of a connector 45. In other words, theelastic space 24 can provide a looseness-proof effect for the lockingrelationship between the connector 45 and the drain pipe 40.Accordingly, the drain pipe 40 can be more securely locked with thedrain hole 20 by means of the connector 45.

That is, when the drain pipe 40 (or the drain) is supported on the edgesection 21 of the drain hole 20 and locked therewith by means of theconnector 45, the elastic space 24 provides a move area or range for theterminal section 23 to lean against the edge section 21 under thelocking/pressing force of the connector 45 so as to store energy.

Therefore, after the drain pipe 40 is locked with the drain hole 20 bymeans of the connector 45, the structure form of the edge section 21,the connection section 22 and the terminal section 23 makes the terminalsection 23 (or the edge section 21) tend to bound downward (or upward)away in the direction of the vertical reference axis y to release theenergy. Accordingly, the drain pipe 40 (or the drain) is constantlytightly locked with the drain hole 20 by means of the connector 45 withan elastic tolerance. Under such circumstance, the locking relationshipcan be ensured to elastically hold the drain hole 20.

Please now refer to FIG. 4. In a preferred embodiment, the terminalsection 23 extends from the connection section 22 in the direction ofthe horizontal reference axis x to attach to a lower side of the edgesection 21. That is, in this embodiment, the terminal section 23 and theedge section 21 are pressed together. In cooperation with the connectionsection 22, a double-layered structure is formed with the elastic space24.

FIG. 5 shows a modified embodiment of the present invention. In thisembodiment, the edge section 21 of the drain hole 20 is fitted in anenclosure body 30 with a U-shaped cross section for enclosing a part ofthe edge section 21 to form the elastic space 24. The enclosure body 30is made of an elastic material, plastic material or the like.

FIG. 6 shows another modified embodiment of the present invention. Inthis embodiment, the connection section 22 is upward bent and theterminal section 23 extends from the connection section 22 in thedirection of the horizontal reference axis x to lean against an upperside of the edge section 21. The terminal section 23 overlaps at least apart of the edge section 21 to form a substantially double-layeredstructure.

The tail end 25 of the terminal section 23 leans against the edgesection 21, whereby the edge section 21, the connection section 22 andthe terminal section 23 together form a double-layered structuredefining the elastic space 24.

The sink drain hole structure of the present invention has the followingadvantages:

-   -   1. The edge section 21, the arched connection section 22 and the        terminal section 23 of the drain hole 20 are redesigned and        different from the conventional sink drain hole in structure and        use form. The conventional sink drain hole has some shortcomings        that the water beam will impact and vibrate the sink to cause        loosening and leakage of the connector for connecting the drain        (or the drain pipe) with the drain hole and the drain (or the        drain pipe) and the connector will gradually loosen due to        thermal expansion/contraction and the material of the drain pipe        connector assembly structure is subject to aging. The sink drain        hole structure of the present invention overcomes the above        problems. In this case, it is unnecessary for a worker to relock        the loosened connector and drain pipe embedded in a concrete        structure or implanted in a narrow space.    -   2. The edge section 21, the arched connection section 22 and the        terminal section 23 of the drain hole 20 together define the        elastic space 24. Without increasing the thickness of the sink        and the drain hole, the elastic space 24 provides an elastic        tightening tolerance when the drain pipe 40 (or the drain) is        locked with the drain hole 20 by means of the connector 45. This        enhances the looseness-proof effect for the connector, whereby        the drain pipe 40 can be more securely locked with the drain        hole 20 by means of the connector 45. Also, the drain hole of        the sink drain hole structure of the present invention has        arched edge so that a user is protected from being cut.

The above embodiments are only used to illustrate the present invention,not intended to limit the scope thereof. Many modifications of the aboveembodiments can be made without departing from the spirit of the presentinvention.

What is claimed is:
 1. A sink drain hole structure comprising a sinkmain body formed of a rigid wall and a drain hole integrally formed withthe sink main body, the sink main body having a basin in communicationwith the drain hole, the drain hole being defined with a horizontalreference axis, a vertical reference axis and a central area, the drainhole having an edge section in the direction of the horizontal referenceaxis for supporting and connecting with a drain, a connection sectionextending from the edge section in the direction of the verticalreference axis and a terminal section extending from the connectionsection in the direction of the horizontal reference axis, the terminalsection having a tail end, the terminal section overlapping at least apart of the edge section to form a double-layered structure defining anelastic space.
 2. The sink drain hole structure as claimed in claim 1,wherein the tail end leans against the edge section.
 3. The sink drainhole structure as claimed in claim 1, wherein the connection section ofthe drain hole is an arched turning structure with a U-shaped crosssection.
 4. The sink drain hole structure as claimed in claim 1, whereinthe connection section extends from the edge section toward the centralarea of the drain hole in the direction of the vertical reference axis.5. The sink drain hole structure as claimed in claim 1, wherein theterminal section is normally forced to store energy and tends to releasethe energy in the direction of the vertical reference axis.
 6. The sinkdrain hole structure as claimed in claim 4, wherein the edge section isnormally forced to store energy and tends to release the energy in thedirection of the vertical reference axis.
 7. The sink drain holestructure as claimed in claim 1, wherein the terminal section partiallyattaches to a lower side of the edge section.
 8. The sink drain holestructure as claimed in claim 1, wherein the terminal section partiallyleans against a lower side of the edge section.
 9. The sink drain holestructure as claimed in claim 1, wherein the connection section isupward bent and the terminal section extends from the connection sectionin the direction of the horizontal reference axis to lean against theedge section, whereby the edge section, the connection section and theterminal section together define an elastic space.
 10. The sink drainhole structure as claimed in claim 1, wherein a drain is locked with thedrain hole by means of a connector, the edge section, the connectionsection and the terminal section together defining an elastic space,when the connector presses the terminal section against the edgesection, the elastic space providing a move range to store energy,whereby the terminal section is normally forced to store energy andtends to release the energy.
 11. The sink drain hole structure asclaimed in claim 1, wherein the sink main body is made of a metal thinsheet by means of pressing and the metal sheet is integrally drawn andpressed to form the drain hole.
 12. A sink drain hole structurecomprising a sink main body formed of a rigid wall and a drain holeintegrally formed with the sink main body, the sink main body having abasin in communication with the drain hole, the drain hole being definedwith a horizontal reference axis and a vertical reference axis, thedrain hole having an edge section in the direction of the horizontalreference axis for supporting and connecting with a drain (or a drainpipe), the edge section being fitted in an enclosure body with aU-shaped cross section.
 13. The sink drain hole structure as claimed inclaim 12, wherein the enclosure body encloses a part of the edgesection.
 14. The sink drain hole structure as claimed in claim 12,wherein the enclosure body is made of plastic material.
 15. The sinkdrain hole structure as claimed in claim 12, wherein the enclosure bodyis made of elastic material.
 16. The sink drain hole structure asclaimed in claim 12, wherein the sink main body is made of a metal thinsheet by means of pressing and the metal sheet is integrally drawn andpressed to form the drain hole.